36 get filthy nch somewhere else, and they came back talkIng about their for- tunes but wearing the same clothes the} , d left with. Music and sideshows arrived-wheels of chance, fortune- tellers, gunmen, and men with snakes coiled about their necks who were selling the elixir of eternal life. They kept on coming for many weeks, even after the first rains had come and the sea became rough and the smell dis- appeared. A priest arrived among the last He walked all over, eatIng bread dipped in 1ight coffee, and, little by little, he banned everything that had come be- fore him-games of chance, the new mUSIC and the way it was danced, and even the recent custom of sleeping on the beach. One evening, at Melchor's house, he preached a sermon about the ,;mell of the sea. "Give thanks to Heaven, my chil- dren," he said, "for this is the smell of God." Someone interrupted him. "How can you tell, Father? You haven't II d . " " sme e It yetr "The Holy Scriptures," he saId, "are quite explicit in regard to this smell. Weare living in a chosen village." Tobías went about back and forth at the festival like a sleepwalker. He took Clotilde to see what money was. They made believe they were betting enormous sums at roulette, and then the) figured their winnings ,:lnd felt extremel} rich. But one night not just the) but the whole multitude occupy- ing the town sa\ l more money In one- place than they ever could have imag- in e d. That was the night Mr. Herbert arrived He appeared suddenly and set up a table in the middle of the street, and on top of the table he placed two large trunks brimful of bank- notes. There was so much money that no one noticed it at first, because they couldn't believe it. But when Mr. Herbert started ringing a little bel] the- people- had to believe him, and they went over to listen. " I ' h 0 h 0 1 ld " m t e rIC est man In t 1e wor , he said. "I've got so much money I haven't got room to keep it anymore. And besides, since my heart's so big that there's no room for it in my chest, I have decided to travel the world over, solving the problems of m'ln- kind. " He was tall and ruddy. He spoke in a loud voice and without pauses, and waved about a pair of lukewarm, languid hands that looked as if the}' J just been shaved He spoke for fifteen minu tes He rested, and then he rang R.IDING THE ELF-- VA TOR. INTO THE SKY .,A.s the fireman said: Don't book a room over the fifth floor in any hotel In New York. The) have ladders that will reach further but no one will climb them. As the New York Times said: The elevator always seeks out the floor of the fire and automatically opens and won't shut. These are the warnings that you must forget if you're climbing Out of yourself If you're going to smash into the sky. Many times I've gone past the fifth floor, cranking upward, bu t only once have I gone all the way up. Sixtieth floor: small plants and swans bendIng into their grave Floor two hundred: mountains with the patience of a cat silence wearing its sneakers. Floor five hundred: messages and letters cen turies old birds to drink, a kitchen of clouds. Floor six thousand: the stars, skeletons on fire, their arms singing. And a key, a very large key, that opens something- some useful door- somewhere up there. ... . the lIttle bell and began to speak agaIn Halfway through his speech, someone in the crowd flourished a hat and in ter- rupted hin1. "Come on, Mister Don't talk so much. Start handing out the money." "Not so fast," Mr. Herbert replied. "Handing out money willy-nilly, in addition to being an unfair way of doing things, doesn't make any sense." He locdted the man who had in- terrupted him and motioned him to -ANNE SEX'T'ON . come forward The crowd let him through. "On the other hand," Mr Herbert went on, "this impatient friend of ours is going to give us a chance to demon- strate the most equitable system of the distribution of wealth." He reached out a hand and helped him up. "What's your name?" " p 0 0 " atnclO. "All right, Patricio," Mr. Hel bert said. "lust like everybody else, you've got a problem you haven't been able to solve for some time" Patricio took off his hat and con- firmed this with a nod. " Wh o. '\" at IS It r "Well, my problem ic; this," Patri- o O d " 1 h ' " CIO aI . a ven t got any money. "How much do you need?" " F 0 h " orty-eIg t pesos. MI. Herbert gave an exclamatIon